Rocky’s Viewpoint
The holiday travel season is coming up and many people will find themselves in need of a boarding facility for their dog. Does this sound like you? If so, do you want to make sure you choose the right home away from home for your dog but don’t know how? Cost aside, check out these six tips to make sure you select the best facility for your beloved friend.
Does your dog give you “that look” or growl at you when he has his favorite toy and you try to take it away? What about when your other dog gets near his food bowl? If so, your dog is doing what is called “resource guarding.” According to animal behaviorist Patricia McConnell, PhD, CAAB, resource guarding is a behavior that discourages another to take, or get too close to an object or valued area in a dog’s possession.
Do you work long hours and worry about leaving your precious four-legged friend home all day? If so, you may have thought about enrolling him in a doggie daycare program so he can get some exercise, meet new friends, and socialize. But how do you know if your dog will truly enjoy himself and get the benefits you hope?
As we have often said, we use ozone to sanitize the water in our indoor pool. Why is that? Because chlorine is toxic, it’s a poison that kills things like e. coli and giardia. In a pool you need something to kill bacteria and other germs and chlorine is the most popular choice because it’s inexpensive. Unfortunately, because it’s toxic, it has actually been linked to serious health problems in humans because it absorbs quickly through the skin.
I love it when my dog is doing something really cute or cool and I manage to get a great photo of it. I use my phone, and I’m sure you do too. Unlike my camera, I always have my phone with me making it easier to capture those special moments. But I’ve also noticed that often the pictures don’t turn out as well as they could be, or my dog moves or stops being cute before I can snap that photo. So what can we do to take better pictures of our dogs with our phones?
We had a very nice older couple come to Rocky’s Retreat the other day who just adopted a six year old springer spaniel just diagnosed with spondylosis. They were concerned about their ability to care for the dog as the disease progressed. They wanted to know if hydrotherapy could help and what else they could do for the dog.
Ginger, a 15 year old shiba/chow mix has pretty severe arthritis, as well as muscle atrophy and weakness in her hind legs. She’s been swimming with us for a number of weeks now, and during each swim session we’re working on specific techniques to maximize the movement in her rear legs and range of motion in her front legs. In a short time, there has been a noticeable improvement in both muscle tone and strength in her hind quarters.
Is your dog afraid of fireworks, thunderstorms, and other loud noises? Does he begin to pace, pant, drool, or want to hide in the closet the moment there’s a hint of a storm brewing? Experts don’t know why dogs develop noise phobias, but they say it’s real, and shouldn’t be ignored.
As the seasons change, so do the conditions your dog is exposed to when participating in outdoor activities. We’re now going into our hot season so we need to be aware of the heat and how well your dog can tolerate these temperatures. If you’re prepared for the environment and know your limits, then you reduce the risk of health problems and injury.
People often ask us what they can do with their dog’s diet to help the dog lose weight. Even when their dogs are on a low calorie diet, they often say their dogs aren’t losing weight or have only lost a little. So we’ve been telling them about the green bean diet. It’s a diet many people have never heard of. Very simply, this diet reduces the amount of kibble by up to 50% and substitutes green beans, which are low in calories and higher in fiber.
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